Commander Steve Goes to Second Grade (A McRoll in the REAL World Story
by ilna
Summary: Steve and Catherine accompany Jacob's class on a field trip to the aquarium.


**Notes:** Mari and Sammy – Thanks for all the squeals and awws.

Readers and REAL McRollers – These class visits have become one of my favorite traditions to write in the REAL World. I hope you enjoy reading them as much as I enjoy writing them! Thank you for all your amazing feedback and kind words. We love having you with us on this ride.

 **Hope you enjoy!**

* * *

 _Commander Steve Goes to Second Grade (A McRoll in the REAL World Story)_

"They're here!" Jacob cried as he was the first of his class to step off the bright yellow school bus in the loading/unloading zone of the Waikiki Aquarium. He darted toward Steve and Catherine who were waiting on the grass. "You came!" He flung his arms around Catherine as far as he could reach. He grinned up at her and then looked at her belly. "Hiya, Niblet!"

Steve chuckled, ruffling his hair. "Of course we came. We said we'd be here to help chaperone."

"And I'm very glad you are," Jacob's teacher, Joni Lane, said as she approached, herding the rest of the class. "I had a couple parents unexpectedly call off. Jeremy's little brother got a stomach bug so his mom had to stay home, and Sarah's father had an emergency at work." She smiled at the two other adults who had walked over with the class, the man carrying a medium-sized banker's box that he had set down at his feet. "It took a little finagling of my chart," she held up a clipboard, "but we'll make it work."

"Yes, we will," Steve replied confidently.

"Just tell us what you need us to do," Catherine said, smiling warmly.

"Let me get everyone assigned to a group, then I'll go check us in," Ms. Lane said, looking down at her clipboard.

"I want to be in Commander Steve's group!" Keone cried, jumping over to stand next to Steve.

"Me, too!" Ameera said.

"Can I go with Lieutenant Catherine, Ms. Lane?" Sydney asked. "Pleeeeease."

"And me!" Sarah echoed.

"Who are you gonna go with, Jacob?" Jeremy asked. "Commander Steve or Lieutenant Catherine?"

Jacob bit his lip, looking back and forth between two of his favorite people in the world. Finally, he clasped Catherine's hand and leaned against her side. "Sorry, Uncle Steve," he said apologetically.

Steve gave him a quick wink. "No problem, buddy. I'd want to be in Lieutenant Catherine's group, too." He glanced up at her and smiled.

" 'Cause he wants to watch her and his baaaaaby," Ameera said, causing several of the others to giggle and Steve and Catherine to exchange an amused look.

"He can't even see the baby yet," Madison said. "It's inside Lieutenant Catherine."

"I know," Ameera snapped, her hands going to her hips. "And you know what else I know–"

"It's not a 'it,' " Jacob interrupted. "She's a girl."

"Okay, okay," Ms. Lane cut in. "We've gotten a little off track. We need to get back to our group assignments."

"I wanna go with Commander Steve!" Nolan cried.

"Nolan," his teacher said, her brow knitting in confusion. "Your dad is here as a chaperone, too."

"Yeah, but I see him all the time," Nolan reasoned.

"Oh, nice, kid," his dad said, chuckling good-naturedly. He looked at Steve and Catherine. "How do you like that?"

Nolan laughed as his dad lifted him into the air.

"Would Commander Steve do that?"

"No," Keone said. "But I bet he could. He's real strong. He's in the Navy!"

"Hey, Commander Steve!" Jeremy said suddenly. "Did you get all our signal flag messages?"

Steve smiled. "I got every one. Thank you for sending them. They were all great."

"Mine was the one about the baby," Ameera said.

"I don't think mine was spelled right," Keahi put in.

The other kids all began to talk at once until Ms. Lane raised a hand and said, "Give me five."

Her class obediently raised their own hands into the air and stopped talking.

"I know we're all very glad Commander Steve got the messages, and we're very grateful to Jacob and Lieutenant Catherine for sharing the signal flag codes with us. But let's get back to our aquarium groups so we can head inside. Now, you might not all get your first choice of group," she said, "but I promise you are going to have a wonderful time walking around the aquarium and learning about all the marine life they have here. And afterwards, we're going to have a picnic snack together on the grass over there." She pointed to a fenced in area next to the parking lot. "Oh, the coolers," she said. "Commander, could you and Mr. Engle get the coolers off the bus after I announce the groups? The coordinator I spoke with on the phone said we could store them in the classroom even though we won't be using it during our field trip."

"Of course," Steve said, nodding to Nolan's father.

"Okay," Ms. Lane said, referring back to her clipboard. "Remember your group, but please don't move until I ask you to. In Mrs. Kawai's group: Ani, of course, Sophia, Matthew, and Owen. In Mr. Engle's group: Nolan, Oliver, Sarah, and Yuri. In Lieutenant Catherine's group: Jacob, Reggie, Takisha, and Sydney."

"Don't forget Niblet!" Jacob cried.

Ms. Lane smiled. "Who could forget Niblet? Jacob, Reggie, Takisha, Sydney, and Niblet," she said. "In Commander Steve's group: Keone, Jeremy, Ameera, and Kalea. And in my group, Madison, Maurion, Keahi, and Alani." She looked back up. "Is everyone clear on their group?"

"Yes, Ms. Lane," they chorused.

"I need all of my almost-third graders to stay here for a moment with Lieutenant Catherine and Mrs. Kawai. Commander Steve and Mr. Engle, if you could grab the two coolers from the bus and meet me at the check-in counter?"

"Absolutely," Steve said. He set off toward the bus with Mr. Engle while Ms. Lane walked briskly toward the Visitor's Service counter.

Catherine looked at the kids surrounding her and said, "Raise your hand if this is your first time visiting the aquarium."

Several of the hands went up.

"I've been here," Jacob said. "It's the first place Aun–" He grinned. "I mean, _Lieutenant_ Catherine and I went. We came here with my sister Kaitlyn and Uncle Danny and Grace. We got to ride in Uncle Steve's big truck!" He pointed to the blue truck in the parking lot. "I got a shark toy!"

"I came here twice with my mom and dad," Sarah said.

"My dad took me here," Yuri told them. "We always do fun stuff when it's our weekend."

"I never been here," Keahi said. "Do they got sharks in there?"

"Yeah!" Jacob cried.

"They do have sharks here," Catherine confirmed.

"Ms. Lane already said that when we talked about the aquarium," Ameera said to Keahi. "Weren't you listening?"

"Who can tell me something they're looking forward to seeing inside?" Catherine asked. As all the kids started to talk, she said, "Raise your hand. Yes, Owen?"

"Sharks!"

Catherine grinned. "All right. Sydney?"

"Seahorses and sharks and jellyfish!"

"That's a lot." Catherine smiled at a shy boy who was half-raising his hand. "What about you, Reggie?"

"I wanna see Nemo," he said quietly, so different from his brother Jadon.

"Nemo isn't real," Keahi said, his lip curling.

"Yeah," Maurion echoed.

Reggie looked down, his shoulders starting to hunch, but Catherine smiled.

"But Nemo _is_ a real type of fish," she said. "Does anyone know what kind?" She eyed Reggie, and when he looked at her with a small nod, she nodded encouragingly. "Reggie?"

"He's a clownfish."

"That's right," she said, smiling warmly at him. "I hope we get to see Nemo, too."

The other kids began chatting animatedly about their favorite parts of the _Finding Nemo_ and _Finding Dory_ movies as well as what they hoped to see inside the aquarium.

"Nicely done," Mrs. Keahi said as she stepped closer to Catherine.

"Oh, thank you," Catherine said and offered her hand. "Catherine Rollins."

"Ailani Keahi. Nice to finally meet you." She smiled at Catherine's belly. "How are you feeling?"

"Pretty good," Catherine said honestly, running a hand over her more prominent belly.

"How far along are you?"

"About 33 weeks."

"Whew. I don't know if I could've done a field trip with second-graders at 33 weeks."

Catherine smiled. "Ms. Lane said it would only be about an hour around the aquarium, so I figured we could handle that," she said, patting her belly. "And I remember there are a few benches scattered around in case I need to sit."

Ailani nodded, and they spotted the two men returning with Ms. Lane.

"Okay, we're all set," the intrepid teacher announced. "Does everyone remember their groups?"

"Yes, Ms. Lane!" they cried, now clearly eager at the prospect of finally entering the aquarium.

"Please go stand with your chaperone so we can review the expectations and pass out observation journals."

After everyone had aligned themselves with their group, Ms. Lane said, "Now, we've talked quite a bit about expectations. Who can tell me one? Yes, Owen?"

"No running."

"That's right. We don't want any accidents today. Who has another? Takisha?"

"Use quiet voices."

"Yes. We want to be respectful of all the people _and_ animals at the aquarium by using quiet voices. Another?"

"Stay with your chaperone!" Jacob said and smiled up at Catherine.

"Good one. You should always be with your adult chaperone and your group. That might mean you have to wait a few extra minutes at an exhibit before moving on, but it is very important that you stay together." She looked around. "There's one more I'd like to hear. Yes, Reggie?"

"Don't tap on the glass," he said quietly.

"Yes, exactly. That could be very upsetting to the fish and other animals. And at the outdoor exhibits, keep your hands and arms out out of the tanks."

"So the sharks don't bite off your hand!" Keone said.

"I don't think you'll be getting that close to a shark," Ms. Lane said. "But that are other animals and plants outdoors, and you don't want to hurt them or be hurt yourself." She tapped her clipboard. "Now, as for our learning expectations, could Mrs. Kawai and Mr. Engle please pass out the clipboards from the box there?"

As the two adults passed out a small clipboard with a pencil attached by yarn, Ms. Lane continued. "These are your observation journals. There is a small half-sheet for each exhibit. Please make at least one observation on each page. Your observations can be sentences or they can be drawings, but they cannot _all_ be drawings. If you draw a picture at one exhibit, please write a sentence at the next one. Any questions?"

"My pencil broke," Keahi said, holding it up.

"How did it break already?"

"I dunno."

"He tried to fit it through the hole and broke it on the clipboard," Madison said.

He made a face at her.

Ms. Lane sighed. "Your chaperone will have extra pencils. Any other questions?"

"Are we all gonna fit in the aquarium?" Oliver asked, looking around at their large group.

"Yes, we will. But they do ask that each of our groups start at a different exhibit so that we're a little staggered and not all bunched up in one place. I've highlighted your starting place on your map," Ms. Lane said, handing each adult a map of the aquarium. "Okay. Let's drop our empty box off at the classroom and go see some marine animals and plants. "

"Yes!" Jacob said, pumping his fist. "This is gonna be the best field trip ever!"

* * *

"Okay, what observations are you gonna make about the fish in this tank?" Steve asked his group as they stood around the Hawaiian Marine Communities gallery.

"Look at that yellow one with the long nose!" Keone said, pointing.

"That's not the only thing long about it," Steve said, looking at the description of the fish by the tank. "It has the longest Hawaiian name of any fish." He pointed to the name: lau-wiliwili-nukunuku-'oi'oi.

"Whoa!" Jeremy said. He put his clipboard by the placard. "I'm writing that for my observation."

Keone joined him. "Me, too." He looked around. "Hey, where's my journal?"

"You left it over here," Ameera said, pointing to the ledge on the opposite side of the tank.

"Commander Steve, what's that orange and blue one?" Kalea asked, pointing to another fish swimming around the coral branches.

"Let's look and see," he said, motioning to the various signs around the exhibit. "Can you figure it out?"

She looked at the fish pictured and brightened suddenly. "There it is. 'Potter's Angelfish,' " she read. She looked at him quizzically. "Angelfish?"

"Yep, there are lots of different kinds of angelfish in the oceans, but this one is only found in Hawaii."

"Cool," she said. "I'm writing that."

"That's a good fact, but how about you write an observation as well?" Steve suggested. "Something you see just from looking at the fish. You, too, guys," he said to Keone and Jeremy.

Kalea watched the tank for a moment, then said, "It stays pretty close to the coral."

"That's a good observation," Steve said.

"And those long name fish have the longest noses, too," Keone said.

"Good."

As the kids wrote down their observations, Steve looked over to where he could see Catherine's group standing around the jellyfish tank.

"I'm drawing a jellyfish for my observation," Takisha said to Catherine.

"Good idea."

"I wish I had my markers."

"Well, maybe you can draw it in pencil now, and when you get back to school you can color it with markers," Catherine suggested.

Takisha smiled. "Yeah. But I'm not gonna put eyes or a mouth 'cause they don't got those."

"Jellyfish do have a mouth," Catherine said. "It's in the middle of all those tentacles. But you're right, they don't have eyes the way you and I do. Some have organs that can detect light, and actually some do have eyes. The box jellyfish has 24 eyes."

Takisha's own eyes widened, as well as the other three kids around them.

"24?" Jacob asked.

"Yep."

"That's a lot of eyes," he stated.

Catherine chuckled and looked back at the tank. "But not these guys. These are moon jellies."

"Do they sting?" Sydney asked.

Catherine looked at the information beside the tank. "Yes, but it's a mild sting. It wouldn't hurt too bad."

"I hope I never get stung," Takisha said, looking up from her drawing.

"It's not fun," Catherine admitted.

"You got stung?" Jacob asked, his eyes wide.

"Once, but not by a jellyfish. By something called a Portuguese man-of-war."

"Whoa," Reggie said, his voice quiet but earnest.

"You've heard of those?" she asked.

He nodded.

"Did it hurt lots?" Jacob asked.

"It did," Catherine said, wincing even now at the memory. She smiled reassuringly when he slipped his hand into hers, looking worried. "But Uncle Steve took care of me."

* * *

Steve's group had reached the Amazing Adaptations exhibit and were looking at the seahorses. They watched as one glided down toward a plant and grasped it with its tail.

"Whoa!" Jeremy said, pointing. "There's another one! I didn't even see it."

Steve nodded. "That's some great camouflage, huh?"

"Yeah."

"Seahorses are actually not very good swimmers, so they spend a lot of time holding onto seaweed and other plants."

The two girls were looking at the information posted by the tank.

"Male means boy, right, Commander Steve?" Kalea asked.

"Right."

She nodded and looked back at the placard. "What's a em-bry-o?" she continued, sounding out an unfamiliar word.

He paused, suddenly realizing where this line of questioning was going. "It's a uh … it's a baby, before it's born."

"This says the boy seahorses have a pouch to hold the embryos." Her eyes narrowed. "Does that mean the daddy seahorse has the babies?"

Steve blinked, then swallowed. "Um … kind of … yeah."

She and Ameera looked at each other, then back at him.

"That's not what people do," Ameera said.

"No, it's not," Steve said carefully.

"Mommy people have the babies, like Lieutenant Catherine."

"Right."

She grinned knowingly, glancing down to where Catherine and her group were standing around an exhibit of coral and fish. "I know how the baby got in there."

Steve's eyebrows shot up. "You–"

"My sister told me it happens when the mommy and daddy kiss and stuff when they're all alone." She smiled proudly.

He let out a small sigh of relief that that was as far as she went. He glanced at the other kids, then back to Ameera. "That's … probably something you should let other kids talk to their parents about."

"Niblet is a weird name for a baby," Keone said suddenly.

Steve looked surprised. "How did you–"

"Jacob said that's what you call the baby and Lieutenant Catherine said he was right."

"We do, but that's not going to be her name."

"Don't you know what her name is going to be?" Kalea asked.

"Yes, but we're keeping it a secret," Steve said, happy for this change in subject.

"Tell us!" Ameera cried. "Tell us, pleeeeeease! I'm really good at keeping secrets, aren't I, Kalea?"

"She's so good. So am I. Pleasepleaseplease tell us!"

He smiled. "Sorry, that's classified intel."

"Ohhh," the girls moaned, disappointed.

"So even though you know her name, you still call her Niblet 'cause you want to keep it a secret?" Jeremy asked.

"Pretty much."

"Even when it's just you and Lieutenant Catherine?"

"Yep." He winked. "If we didn't, we might slip up and tell everyone her name by accident."

Keone gaped. "But you're Commander Steve! You don't do anything by accident."

Steve smiled. "You'd be surprised." His expression softened as he glanced over toward Catherine. "Besides, I like calling her Niblet for now."

Keone regarded him for a moment, then shrugged. "Okay, but I still think it's kinda weird."

Steve chuckled and said, "Do you know what you're gonna write for your seahorse observation?"

"Um … I don't know where my journal is," Keone said, looking around.

Steve surveyed the area, then nodded toward the fish exhibit they had been at just before. "Looks like you left it back there. Go ahead, I'll watch you."

The other kids started to write as Keone walked back a few feet to the other tank.

"I'm gonna write that none of the seahorses look like they're gonna have babies," Ameera said. "So maybe they're all girls."

"Me, too," Kalea echoed.

"That'll be fun explaining to everyone else later," Steve murmured under his breath.

* * *

"There he is," Reggie said. His voice was still quiet, but there was no mistaking his excitement as he saw a clownfish come into view at the Reef Partners exhibit. He leaned as close to the tank as he could without actually touching the glass. "I've never seen one in real life before," he said, awed.

"You're right!" Jacob said. "It's Nemo, Aunt Catherine!"

"And Nemo's whole family, it looks like," Catherine said.

All the kids crowded around, grinning at the bright orange and white striped fish.

"And that's the anemone where they live," Reggie said.

"That's a hard word to say fast," Jacob observed. "Nemonme nemomome–" He laughed and took a deep breath. "A-ne-mo-ne," he said slowly.

The others laughed, also trying to say the tongue twisting name.

"They sting like jellyfish," Reggie said. "But it doesn't hurt them because they have mucus all over that protects them."

"Uuugh, mucus!" Takisha said, making a face. "Gross!"

"That wasn't in the movie," Sydney said.

"No, but it's true," Reggie insisted.

"He's right," Catherine said.

"And when they first find an anemone to live in, they brush against it so they can get to know each other," Reggie continued. "That _was_ in the movie."

Catherine smiled at him. "How do you know so much about clownfish?"

"I like to read about fish with my brother."

"Andre or Jadon?"

"Jadon. He brings me magazines from the library after work and sometimes they have fish in them. Those are my favorite ones."

"That's wonderful. I bet you've been looking forward to this field trip for a long time."

Reggie nodded seriously. "They have blue tangs here, too. That's the kind of fish Dory is."

She smiled. "Maybe we'll find those next."

* * *

"Look at these!" Keone said excitedly, running over to a display of shark jaws. He reached out to touch one, but they were in a plastic case. "Sandbar shark," he read from the labels. "Shortfin ma-ko shark–"

"Mako," Steve corrected his pronunciation.

"Mako shark." His eyes lit up. "Tiger shark! Man, look at all those teeth!"

"I wish I could find a shark tooth," Jeremy said. "I'd wear it around my neck forever!"

"Yeah!"

"Can we look at the real sharks now?" Ameera asked.

"Wait, I wanna make an observation," Keone said. "The tiger shark is the biggest!"

"Not as big as the great white," Jeremy said.

"No, but that one's not here." Keone stopped suddenly. "Um … Commander Steve? I think I left my journal again."

Steve sighed. "All right, well, the last exhibit is back around the corner so we've all gotta backtrack."

"Oh man," Jeremy groaned.

"Come on," Steve said, leading them back the way they came. "Then we'll go see the sharks."

"You gotta keep track of your stuff, Keone," Jeremy said.

"That's good advice," Steve said.

They walked around the corner and retrieved Keone's clipboard, then made their way to the Hunters on the Reef exhibit.

"Whoa! Awesome," Jeremy said, his voice showing his awe.

Keone, who was trying to write and walk at the same time, bumped into him and looked up. "Whoa," he echoed as they looked at the tank with several large fish swimming around.

"What kind of shark is that?" Kalea asked.

"Looks like zebra sharks," Steve said.

"Zebra?" Ameera repeated. She made a face. "But they've got spots."

"Well, they're also called leopard sharks. When they're young, they've got bars that look like stripes, but when they get older, they have spots."

"So these are all grown up sharks?" Kalea asked, looking around the tank.

"Good observation," Steve said. "You're right. I don't see any with stripes so they're all adults."

She beamed and started writing.

"I can't see their teeth," Jeremy complained.

"Their mouths are on the underside of their heads, but don't worry, they've still got 'em."

When Jeremy still looked disappointed, Steve said, "Why do you think that might be better for the shark to have his jaw and teeth kind of out of the way?"

All four thought about it.

"So they can surprise the other fish when they eat them?" Keone asked, making an exaggerated biting motion.

Steve chuckled. "Good guess, but it actually helps them swim better. Makes 'em more streamlined."

"What's streamlined?" Kalea asked.

"It means they're smooth, not a lot of body parts sticking out to cause water resistance and slow them down."

"Cool," Jeremy said.

"That's one of the coolest things about most sharks," Steve agreed.

Ameera titled her head, regarding him for a moment. "You know lots of stuff," she said finally.

He quirked an eyebrow and gave a little nod. "I do. I like to learn and I remember most of what I've learned."

"That's good," she said matter-of-factly. " 'Cause kids got a lot of questions and you'll be a good dad if you can answer them."

He smiled. "Thanks, Ameera. I'm certainly going to try."

* * *

While the kids looked at the giant clams in one of the outdoor exhibits, Catherine went to sit on a bench a few feet away. She put a hand on her back, stretching carefully and exhaling slowly. Jacob followed and sat beside her.

"You can look at the clams with your friends, honey," she told him. "I just needed a little break."

"We're supposed to stay with our chaperone," he said.

She smiled. "It's okay. You're still with me right there. It's very close. Go ahead and look."

"I saw 'em," he said, shrugging. He slipped his hand into hers again. "And I like to stay by you."

She squeezed his hand gently. "I like to stay by you, too."

They were quiet for a minute, then Jacob said, "The clams kinda look like flowers when they're closed, don't they?"

"They d–" Her word cut off and her brow furrowed at a slight tightening feeling in her belly.

"Aunt Catherine, are you okay?" Jacob asked a few seconds later.

"Hmm?" she asked, her brow smoothing as she looked at Jacob.

"You squeezed my hand really hard."

"Oh, did I hurt you?" she asked, immediately concerned. "I'm sorry, honey."

He shook his head. "Not too bad."

She put her hand to her belly as she felt the sensation again.

"Is Niblet moving?" Jacob asked excitedly.

"I don't think it's Niblet exactly …" She released his hand to shift on the bench, finally deciding to push herself up to a standing position.

"Hey," Steve said as his group had reached the coral farm next to the giant clam exhibit. "You okay?" he asked, noticing the look on her face.

She nodded. "Jacob, did you make your observation about the clams yet?"

His looked at his clipboard and his eyes widened. "I forgot! I'll be right back!" He hurried over to join his classmates.

"What's up?" Steve asked, looking her over even as he kept an eye on the four kids in his group making observations about the coral.

"I'm fine," she assured him, touching his hand. "I think I just had a couple Braxton Hicks contractions."

"What?" he asked, surprised. "Really?"

"Pretty sure. I mean, I have no frame of reference, of course, but I think that's what they were. Tightening feeling, lasted about 15-20 seconds."

He looked her up and down again and she could see him mentally flipping to the information he'd read about the false labor contractions.

He nodded slowly. "It's about the right time. They might have even started earlier. Anytime after week 20, I think it was." His fingers tapped against his thigh, and she smiled.

"You're wishing you had your book right now, aren't you?"

"It's not _my_ book, it's–"

"Steve, come on. Whose handwritten notes are in the margins all over that thing? Yours or mine?"

He opened his mouth to retort, but closed it again, chuckling.

"I'm surprised you haven't found a pocket guide," she said, amused.

He grinned. "I have, it's called my phone," he said, taking it out of his pocket and waving it. "Also useful to call Dr. Kucher's office, just in case?"

"They've already stopped," she said. "When I stood up."

He nodded. "Usually stop when you change position," he said, and she was sure he was quoting from the book.

"I'll let you know if they start up again," she promised.

"Okay," he said, slipping his phone back into his pocket.

Jacob skipped back over, quickly joined by the other kids in their two groups.

"I made my clam observation, Aunt Catherine," Jacob said. He held up his clipboard. "I wrote they looked like flowers and I drew a picture of a clam and a flower next to each other."

"Excellent," she said.

"Um … Commander Steve …?" Keone began.

Steve held up his clipboard. "Looking for this?"

Keone took it sheepishly.

"If I had a bungee cord with me, I'd attach it to your belt loop," Steve said. "You're lucky my truck's all the way in the parking lot."

The kids laughed at that.

"Go on," Steve said, nodding back toward the coral farm. "I'll watch you from here."

"Can I go with him?" Jeremy asked.

"That's fine," Steve said. "Thank you for asking."

As the two boys ran back toward the exhibit, Steve called, "Walk!"

"Quiet voice, Commander Steve," Reggie reminded him, his own voice barely above a whisper.

Catherine squeezed his shoulder, and Steve smiled down at him.

"You're right, Reggie, I'm sorry."

"Did Commander Steve tell you about the seahorses, Lieutenant Catherine?" Ameera asked.

"The boy ones have the babies," Kalea supplied.

Catherine glanced at Steve who had carefully schooled his features.

"We've been learning a lot," he said diplomatically.

"So it would seem," she replied, fighting a smile.

* * *

After an hour in the aquarium, all the groups met up in the classroom. Keone was the first to put his observation journal back in the banker's box, grinning at Steve as he did so.

They collected the two coolers and walked around the parking lot the grassy area set up for picnics. Luckily they were the only group using the space, so the kids were able to burn off their pent up energy by running around

Steve's gaze had drifted back to the aquarium from where he sat at a small picnic table with Catherine.

She placed a hand over his and asked, "What are you thinking about?" She grinned. "Seahorses?"

He chuckled and looked back at her. "No. I was thinking about taking Niblet here in a few years."

She smiled at the excitement in his eyes.

"And not just here," he continued. "Museums, zoos, Pearl … the Arizona. Watching her see things for the first time … answering her questions."

She squeezed his hand, smiling softly.

"You're gonna be great at that," she said.

"I hope so. I'm gonna try to be." He swallowed. "I'm always gonna answer her questions," he said resolutely. "For better or worse. She won't ever have to wonder …" His voice faded, and she tightened her fingers around his supportively.

"I know."

He smiled, grateful that she always understood.

Jacob ran over breathlessly. "Aunt Catherine, Uncle Steve, did you see my cartwheel? I can almost do it straight!"

"Keep practicing, buddy," Steve said, smiling genuinely at him.

"Okay!" he cried, and took off again.

"Speaking of practice," Steve said, pressing a gentle hand to Catherine's belly. "I read those are also called 'practice contractions.' Any more?"

She shook her head. "No. But I'm sure there will be." Her smile widened. "Won't be long now, and before we know it, we'll be coming on field trips with Niblet's class."

He smiled and leaned over for a quick kiss. "And every one will be the best field trip ever."

* * *

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